Jobim made his last Brazilian concert appearance -- and the penultimate one of his life -- at this warm, star-studded affair in which American jazz musicians jetted down to the Free Jazz Festival in Sao Paulo to pay effusive homage. The miracle is how easily the jazzers were able to capture the yearning essence of Jobim's idiom without really compromising their own distinct styles. Thus Joe Henderson welds his trademark unpredictable flurries into the cool tenor sax bossa nova tradition; Shirley Horn does "Once I Loved" in her own inimitable manner which matches the mood of the song perfectly; Jon Hendricks' scatting fits the samba like a glove. The pianists go somewhat outside the idiom -- Herbie Hancock's modern complexity, Gonzalo Rubalcaba's technical fireworks laced with Afro-Cuban salsa -- but they stay within their orbits around the Jobim sun. The composer himself only appears on the last four tracks -- he sounds weary and ill -- yet he radiates his gentle warmth and spirit throughout the evening. (Richard S. Ginell)
Musicians:
Antonio Carlos Jobim (Piano, Vocals), Gal Costa (Vocals), Ron Carter (Bass, Piano), Herbie Hancock (Piano, Keyboards), Joe Henderson (Tenor Saxophone, Vocals), Shirley Horn (Piano, Vocals), Gonzalo Rubalcaba (Piano), Alex Acuņa (Percussion), Oscar Castro-Neves (Guitar), Jon Hendricks (Vocals), Paulo Jobim (Guitar), Harvey Mason Sr. (Drums).
13 Tracks.